I use Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. or Vic Firth drummers headphones. The Sennheisers are closed, have great bass response and are more comfortable and light weight. The Vic Firth headphones knock down a little more volume but don't sound quite as good. I use the Sennheisers with my E-drums and the Vic Firth phones for practice on my acoustic kit.

I can also recommend the Sennheiser 280's. I use a lot of high end headphones from AKG, Sony, Audio-technica and BeyerDynamic for tracking drums and the 280's have a good frequency response and great isolation from outside sound sources.

I use Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. or Vic Firth drummers headphones. The Sennheisers are closed, have great bass response and are more comfortable and light weight. The Vic Firth headphones knock down a little more volume but don't sound quite as good. I use the Sennheisers with my E-drums and the Vic Firth phones for practice on my acoustic kit.

I have the Vics and am looking at those Senns. How much more do Vics isolate?

Can you safely play acoustic drums with those Senns without needing ear plugs?

I have the Vics and am looking at those Senns. How much more do Vics isolate?

Can you safely play acoustic drums with those Senns without needing ear plugs?

I think you could. The specs on the phones say they cut external sound by 32dB. OSHA noise exposure says you can listen at 90db (averaged) for 8 hours. I estimate acoustic drums would be around 115 db (more or less), so that would put you within a safe margin around 83db. None of this takes into consideration the volume you might be putting into the phones from an ipod, etc..

I was just looking at the specs on the Vic Firth headphones, and they claim to cut external sound by 24db, so the Sennheisers actually beat them a little, but the Sennheisers also cost more.

The best ones by far from my experience are the GKMusic ones. They're the only ones that truly seal around your ears to protect and they have top of the line sony drivers in them. A lot of studio drummers in Nashville are swearing by them.

I think you could. The specs on the phones say they cut external sound by 32dB. OSHA noise exposure says you can listen at 90db (averaged) for 8 hours. I estimate acoustic drums would be around 115 db (more or less), so that would put you within a safe margin around 83db. None of this takes into consideration the volume you might be putting into the phones from an ipod, etc..

I was just looking at the specs on the Vic Firth headphones, and they claim to cut external sound by 24db, so the Sennheisers actually beat them a little, but the Sennheisers also cost more.

This makes no sense. Earlier you said the Vics isolate more, now you write the opposite. You don't believe a regular closed headphone isolates better than an isolated headphone, do you.

If the manufacturer claims 32dB, what frequencies does he mean? No headphones attenuate equally across frequencies. I bet they only isolate that much above 5000 Hz. 100-5000 Hz will be cut out a lot less and the lowest tones might not be attenuated at all. Closed headphones can even amplify some frequencies.

The best ones by far from my experience are the GKMusic ones. They're the only ones that truly seal around your ears to protect and they have top of the line sony drivers in them. A lot of studio drummers in Nashville are swearing by them.

This makes no sense. Earlier you said the Vics isolate more, now you write the opposite. You don't believe a regular closed headphone isolates better than an isolated headphone, do you.

If the manufacturer claims 32dB, what frequencies does he mean? No headphones attenuate equally across frequencies. I bet they only isolate that much above 5000 Hz. 100-5000 Hz will be cut out a lot less and the lowest tones might not be attenuated at all. Closed headphones can even amplify some frequencies.

Hey thunderstix, you found them! The ones in the first link are the ticket. I owned those extreme isolation ones and sold them because they did not isolate extremely well. The GKmusic ones are totally comfortable and totally isolate (and sound great).

Hey thunderstix, you found them! The ones in the first link are the ticket. I owned those extreme isolation ones and sold them because they did not isolate extremely well. The GKmusic ones are totally comfortable and totally isolate (and sound great).

For that price, they should be! :)

I'm gonna order custom earplugs - I need them anyway for concerts - and see how that works out. If they fit comfy and I can interchange filters, those Senns will be enough. I can't order the Ultraphones in Europe anyway.

What are some good headphones for both drumming (on an acoustic kit) and listening to when your off the kit? like in the car, on the bus, when your dad's baby is crying, when your sister likes to talk on the phone really loudly at 11pm, i could go on...

Okay, what are better for both listening to music on a daily basis and while drumming, Sony Sennheiser cx400 II, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro or Sony MDR-XD200? I've also heard most IEM ear buds are good too, anyone wanna point me in the direction of good IEM's under $70? Preferably one with good bass, I hate headphones with all highs and no lows.

Okay, what are better for both listening to music on a daily basis and while drumming, Sony Sennheiser cx400 II, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro or Sony MDR-XD200?

Do you prefer in-ear phones or cans? From what I can see there the HD280 and Sony's are cans and the CX400 are in-ears.

I'm currently looking to buy new phones too and although I'm very impressed with the HD 280's (they've received some great reviews and props on this forum), I'm leaning towards in-ears (Shure SCL3 are my choice) due to the fact that I also want to use them for general purposes such as ipod etc. I'm just not the type to be skulking the streets of Melbourne with big bulky headphones on. May be worth consideration when making your choice.

Do you prefer in-ear phones or cans? From what I can see there the HD280 and Sony's are cans and the CX400 are in-ears.

I'm currently looking to buy new phones too and although I'm very impressed with the HD 280's (they've received some great reviews and props on this forum), I'm leaning towards in-ears (Shure SCL3 are my choice) due to the fact that I also want to use them for general purposes such as ipod etc. I'm just not the type to be skulking the streets of Melbourne with big bulky headphones on. May be worth consideration when making your choice.

Well, in-ear ones are preferred over cans. Currently Im using these skullcandy skullcrushers, and they're okay, but they don't go loud enough at all. But the hd280's are very tempting, but are they really worth $80-$100? I read a review online somewhere saying that they had no bass at all, all highs no lows.

But the hd280's are very tempting, but are they really worth $80-$100? I read a review online somewhere saying that they had no bass at all, all highs no lows.

Geez Dips....what I wouldn't give to pay US$80-100. They retail here for about A$350 (although I'll do better from my local drum store when I walk in with a smile and an open wallet!!)........and the Shure's retail at A$400 (again, I'll do better....but, you get the point).

From my limited understanding, when it comes to studio or monitor quality headphones. It's not that there's 'no bass' as such, but that the frequencies are not enhanced. The idea being that you get a completely true signal coming through the phones. I may be wrong, and perhaps Audiotech or someone with better knowledge than I might like to chime in......but I've tried both the Senn's and Shure through my ipod and I was so blown away by the pure clarity of sound that any reduced bass or low frequencies was not noticeable to me.

Geez Dips....what I wouldn't give to pay US$80-100. They retail here for about A$350 (although I'll do better from my local drum store when I walk in with a smile and an open wallet!!)........and the Shure's retail at A$400 (again, I'll do better....but, you get the point).

From my limited understanding, when it comes to studio or monitor quality headphones. It's not that there's 'no bass' as such, but that the frequencies are not enhanced. The idea being that you get a completely true signal coming through the phones. I may be wrong, and perhaps Audiotech or someone with better knowledge than I might like to chime in......but I've tried both the Senn's and Shure through my ipod and I was so blown away by the pure clarity of sound that any reduced bass or low frequencies was not noticeable to me.

My only coin toss, still remains cans or in-ear!!

So should I go with the Sennheiser HD280's? But then again, it could of been the song or the eq preset of the person's mp3 player or music player who said they had "no bass." I'm a sucker for bass, whether it's bass in a punk song, or bass in a hip/hop song, that's what I'm all about. :p What shure headphones would you recommend?

So should I go with the Sennheiser HD28's? ...................... What shure headphones would you recommend?

I'm pretty new to all this headphone stuff myself mate, so I'll stay off the recommendations if you don't mind as I like to have at least some idea of what I'm talking about when giving advice.

But I will say, I was very happy with the Senn's and won't hesitate to buy a set if I decide to go with circumaural phones. However, I really think I'm leaning towards in-ears and in this case, the only Shure models I tested were the SE210 and the SCL3. I felt the SCL3 fit my ear canals a little better (of course they did....they're nearly A$200 more....typical!!) and gave me better isolation. The only in-ear Sennheiser model I was able to try was a lower range pair. I dismissed them quickly so took no notice of the model number. I just thought the Shure's offered better sound quality.

Take your ipod into the store and get a few pairs in/on your ears and see how you go is the best recommendation I have for you.

Do you prefer in-ear phones or cans? From what I can see there the HD280 and Sony's are cans and the CX400 are in-ears.

I'm currently looking to buy new phones too and although I'm very impressed with the HD 280's (they've received some great reviews and props on this forum), I'm leaning towards in-ears (Shure SCL3 are my choice) due to the fact that I also want to use them for general purposes such as ipod etc. I'm just not the type to be skulking the streets of Melbourne with big bulky headphones on. May be worth consideration when making your choice.

Big and bulky is exactly what HD280 are.

Try audio technica M30: half the price and some say they sound better (more natural). Sennheiser is very coloured and bass heavy.